


The Right Time

by serafina19



Category: Agent Carter (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2016-08-02
Packaged: 2018-07-10 21:01:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7006717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serafina19/pseuds/serafina19
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daniel tries to get his work done and make an important decision, but Stark persists on bothering him while looking for Peggy. AU, but inspired by events between "Valediction" and "The Lady in the Lake."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Daniel Sousa used to think that if he was ever stuck listening to anyone talk, he would take anyone over Jack Thompson. Despite his merits, their chief acted like he was so much better than everyone else and most of the time, Daniel ended up being the brunt of his jokes. The rest of the time, that role fell to Carter, but at least there was a hint of respect in his voice when he addressed her now. Granted, Daniel figured more would change after she practically cleared Howard Stark's name singlehandedly, but it appeared that certain things never changed.

That didn’t include the suddenly frequent visits from a certain billionaire who took great pleasure in showing the ineptitude of the SSR's security. Today, he was especially insistent on Peggy’s whereabouts, as he paced back and forth, continually asking questions. At this point, it almost made Daniel wish for one of Thompson's jokes.

"Do you at least know when Peg will be back?"

"Fifteen minutes, I think." The fact she was out at all Daniel didn’t like. They had all applauded Peggy that day, but soon after, she was back to taking lunch orders. Daniel tried to fix that, but no matter how many times he offered, she shook it off.

 _There are worse things in the world, Agent Sousa,_ she'd say plainly and then grab her coat.

"She deserves better, you know."  
  
Daniel scoffed as he closed his folder. "Preaching to the wrong choir, Stark."  
  
Howard sensed that, as out of the group of guys here, it appeared that Sousa was the only one who stood up for Peggy. _"_ You know what, she's probably visiting Angie at the diner. I'll meet her there."

"Sure," Daniel replied, grateful that Stark was leaving so he could focus on work.

That didn’t last long, as his timeline to Stark turned out to be spot on. Ten minutes after Stark left, his sandwich dropped down on the desk, so Daniel looked up and smiled.

"Thanks Carter,” he said, watching her return the expression before continuing to pass out the lunches. Once she sat down, Daniel turned his chair. "Did Stark track you down?"

"No,” Peggy said with narrowed eyes. She couldn’t imagine what Howard needed now, but then again, he was never one to sit still for long. It was only a matter of time before his next passion project, which made her cringe inside, hoping it wouldn’t lead to more almost-catastrophes.  “Did he happen to mention why he was looking for me?"

"Unfortunately not.” It wasn’t due to a lack of trying, but Stark seemed intent on asking other questions instead of answering Daniel’s. Or giving him details about his life that Daniel certainly didn’t ask to hear.

Familiar with Howard’s usual tactics, Peggy understood what he had gone through. "I'd apologize for him, but -"

Daniel put his hand up before interjecting, "None needed."  He knew that Stark was a man who marched to the beat of his own drum. "It almost makes me want to hire him for the security upgrade."

Peggy laughed as she picked up her sandwich. "Be careful what you wish for."

"I know. He'd probably be around more then." With that, he turned around and tried to go back to work, but that was interrupted by the Chief entering the room.

"Carter,” Thompson said. “We need you in interrogation."

Sighing as she pulled back her chair, Peggy said, "This must be a tricky subject if you already finished the coffee pot I just put in there."

Thompson shook his head. "Not for coffee, Carter. We have a feeling that a woman's touch is needed."

Peggy nodded. "I'll be right there."

As she walked past Daniel’s desk, he couldn’t resist saying, "Well, I'll be damned. Did Thompson just give you an actual assignment?"

Her eyebrows raised as a grin formed on her face. "Don't act so surprised." To her, things really hadn’t been that bad. Sure, she was still getting lunches, but she liked having an excuse to visit Angie, especially since her friend had a better idea of what she did for a living.

"I'm not,” Daniel said, “but you should go before he changes his mind." With that, her grin stretched wider, so Daniel opened up his sandwich as he looked back down at his work. Case-wise, it was pretty quiet, so it was just a matter of getting caught up on his paperwork.

Something that would dramatically increase if he embraced the opportunity outlined in the letter in his top drawer. Normally, paperwork allowed the morning go by, but this time, it made Daniel pause. After the war, he was thrilled that his job prospects hadn’t dried up, that he was even trusted in the field. Plus, even with his leg, he was a lot better at it than he thought.

This new opportunity, it came with privilege, responsibility, maybe a bit more respect. But it also came with the stupid politics that Daniel couldn’t stand. Maybe he could change things, make a real difference, but there were also reasons to stay here.

Technically, that didn't include Howard Stark, who didn’t waste much time clearing his throat as he stood next to Daniel’s desk almost two hours after he had left the SSR this morning. Daniel tried not to roll his eyes before dropping his pen. "Back so soon?"

"Angie said I just missed her," Stark replied, clearly unamused.

"Here too." He was tempted to ask what took him so long to come back, but Daniel bit it back. Something told him that he didn't want to hear the answer.

Still, Stark had scoffed, taking a look around the room to confirm Daniel's statement. "Where did she go now?"

Daniel looked up. "Hell if I know. I've been swamped with my own work." Technically he could point Stark in the right direction, but he wasn't going to risk sending Stark towards interrogation, even if Peggy was still there. "Go ask Chief if you're so curious."

He had noticed Thompson come back to his desk about five minutes ago, which meant that Peggy had helped his case because he hadn’t slammed his door. While he probably shouldn’t have Stark disturb the boss either, Daniel didn't know what else to do.

"That's not going to help.” Howard’s face soured as he remembered his last few encounters with Jack Thompson. “He doesn't like me much."

"Neither do I," Daniel pointed out.

However, Howard was quick to clarify, "Yeah, but you're still helpful. Chief Happy over there would just shut the door in my face."

"I heard that,” Jack said in the doorway of his office. He had heard the commotion, and he knew this was far from Stark’s first visit, so Jack wanted to regain control of his team. "Agent Carter went home sick, so you think you could also do so?'

"Ouch.” Howard feigned hurt as he put his hand over his chest. “Message received." After all, if Peggy wasn’t here, there wasn’t much point in sticking around. The guys were clearly no fun.

Yet as Howard was about to leave, he heard Thompson call out, "And Stark?"

"Yes?"

"Stop breaking in here." Jack meant it seriously, but he knew there was no way Stark was going to listen.

That was cemented by Howard’s grin as he turned his head over his shoulder. "Only when you have better security." Before the agents had a chance to respond, he waved his hand and continued his exit.

When he disappeared from their sight, Jack leaned against Daniel’s desk. "You ever wish he was actually a traitor?" he asked.

"There are days," Daniel replied as he flipped over the page of the report he was reading.  "Do you need me to cover for Carter for the night shift?" He knew protocol, especially since the bad babies, they ensured multiple people were available for night shift. The guys freaked out about it initially, but eventually, they fell in line. Plus, with the upcoming changes, he wasn’t opposed to having more time devoted to closing his current cases.

"No, but you can cover for Ramirez." When Daniel’s eyes narrowed, Jack added, "I may have lied to Stark."

Daniel rolled his eyes before he focused back on his work. "I'm not covering for Ramirez."

"Still stuck on her, huh?" Jack put his coat through his arms, knowing that Sousa was glaring at him. That was the point. “You might want to do something about that before you –”

He bit his lip to avoid giving a heightened reaction. "I saw Ramirez an hour ago. He’s perfectly healthy, I only offered -"

"Keep telling yourself that," Jack interjected, settling his hat on his head. “I've got an appointment, so I'm taking off now. See you tomorrow, Sousa.”

As Thompson walked away, Daniel took a look at the clock. He hadn’t realized that it was so close to the end of the day, but he continued working, figuring that he could get some more work done before his plans tonight. But as the silence grew in the office, he leaned back in his chair to look around the room, taking in all of the little details. Opening his drawer, he looked at the contents, the offer looming in the air, and he wondered if he could genuinely take it.

 

  
**~0~**

 

  
Sure enough, right around the the end of Daniel's shift, Stark was back. 

"Thompson went home,” Daniel said, his eyes still down on his work as Stark was making a beeline to their chief’s office.

"Fitting," Howard replied, crossing his arms. He peered into the office for good measure, but it didn’t take long to see it was empty.  "He lied to me."

"That he did."

Howard stood by Sousa’s desk, waiting for the other man to look up, but nothing happened. "Not a lot fazes you, does it?"

"Not when I'm trying to get work done."  Because after the Stark case, it was onto the next case, and the days flew by as usual. Plus, he didn’t really like the quietness of his apartment. The concept of home in general was getting a bit fuzzy.  
  
However, Stark didn’t know that, so he jumped to the conclusion of his work-life balance. It wasn’t much of a stretch based on the routines he had seen from Sousa since he started visiting the SSR on a more regular basis. "You don't have much fun, do you?"  
  
Daniel laughed to prevent himself from rolling his eyes. "I think you and I have a very different definition of the word, so I'm not going to answer that." Regardless, even before he lost his leg, it wasn't like Daniel was the Howard Stark type.  
  
"All I'm saying is that you need to loosen up a little." Howard shrugged as he walked around the desk, his eyes on the crutch that leaned against it.  
  
"Not all of us can rest on the money that we've already made, so while I'm on the clock, I prefer to get my work done."  Daniel glanced up, worried where this conversation was going, but he couldn't ignore it either. "Unless I can help you with something besides locating Agent Carter."

"Actually, I’m now considering what I can do to help you." He picked up the crutch, but he didn't get far before Daniel grabbed it back from him.

"No offence, Mr. Stark, but I spent a few good months of my life protecting the world from your bad inventions."  After returning the crutch to its original position, he grinned. "You'll forgive me if I don't want to me to end up as another failed lab experiment."

Howard nodded. "Okay, I deserved that."

"Good," Daniel replied, glad to hear that they could agree about something. Pointing his thumb behind him, he moved his eyes back to his work. "Carter's is two desks back, you can wait there."

"Oh no, I'm enjoying this way too much."  
  
_Of course he was_ , Daniel thought with a sigh. However, it didn't bother him for long, as there was one particular route that he hadn’t attempted in awhile. "Can I leave her a message for you?"  
  
"You're not the replacement secretary for her, are you?" It wasn't a stretch for Howard to believe, as life was unfortunate like that sometimes.  
  
"I'm trying to be patient, but you're exhausting that."  
  
"And I'm starting to doubt this _fun_ that you have. Something you and Peggy have in common. Ever consider-"

"Again," Daniel interjected, his voice doing a bad job of hiding his frustration. "No offence, but I'm not taking advice from you on this matter."  
  
"You know,” Howard said, “You have a lot going for you. It's just a matter of putting yourself out there."  
  
Howard had lifted the crutch again, but Daniel slammed it back to the desk before resting his elbow on the desk so he could lean his head against his hand. "Good to know."

It was a sentiment Daniel had heard plenty of times before, so it surprised him how hard he took it. Maybe because it was coming from someone who couldn't understand what he had gone through. Don't get him wrong, Daniel had learned that there was a lot more to the billionaire than what met the eye, he knew that Stark was heavily involved in the war.

But that didn't mean that he knew who Daniel was... or why he was this way.

That also didn’t mean that Daniel felt like explaining it him, so silence took over for the next few minutes. Eventually, Stark called him on it.  "Now you're just ignoring me."  
  
"Pretty much."  
  
"As he should," Peggy said, walking past both men to her desk. She had overheard the last part of their conversation, as it was clear based on how loud the crutch hit the desk that Daniel was reaching his boiling point. That was something she didn't want to witness again. "Howard, you're hardly a man of valuable advice."  
  
Howard frowned as he turned around to face Peggy. "Seriously, you two are impossible."

She narrowed her eyes before replying, "Out of the three of us, I think that word describes you better."

Howard had to admit, that was probably accurate, but it didn't change one fact. "I'm still the only one who has plans tonight." He knew that Peggy was working late, and from what he had seen, he wasn't sure if Daniel Sousa ever went home.

"You mean besides harassing my colleague?" Peggy asked.

"There's a play opening downtown, I was hoping you could come with me."

"Me? Really?" Putting down her bag, Peggy crossed her arms. "No doe-eyed starlet to clutch your arm as if her life depended on it."

Howard chuckled at that, as he probably deserved that comment too. "Considering the run-in with Ida, I figured it may be better to keep things casual."

"You mean publicly, right?" She could see the disappointment in Howard's eyes, and the imminent comment, but she scoffed to interrupt him. "Don't give that look, Howard. Jarvis and I are friends after all." 

"Fine,” Howard replied, giving in. “I had a date, but she cancelled. I figured it would be a good time to catch up for personal reasons for once."

"Love to, Howard, really I would,” Peggy replied, meaning every word. The sentiment was appreciated, and she could tell that he meant it. There was just one problem. "But I have plans."

Howard scoffed at that. "Work is not plans. I talked to Angie, she said that you were expecting to work late. At least talk to Agent Sousa about covering you."

"I plan on talking to him, but not here." Seeing Daniel turn around in his chair, she smiled at him.  "You ready to go, Daniel?"

"Think so." Everything that he had left to do could be handled tomorrow.  "Who'd you get to cover you?"

"Swapped shifts with Henry so he could miss dinner with his in-laws. A rare win-win actually."

"Then let's go."

Confused, Howard stepped between what felt like a side conversation and put his hands up. "Wait a second, what's going on here?"

Daniel spoke up first. "I owe her a drink." _Owe_ felt like too soft of a word, but then he was reminded of how Peggy had forgiven him for everything.

"And we finally found a time that works between saving the world," Peggy added.

Howard quickly turned back to Daniel. "You never thought to mention that earlier?"

"You never told me why you were looking for Peggy," he replied with a shrug. "How was I supposed to know?"

Walking past Howard, he met up with Peggy, who waved at Howard. "Take care, Howard, enjoy your premiere."

While the two agents left the SSR, Howard froze, surprised that he wasn’t more disappointed by what had just happened. Then again, he was genuinely worried about Peggy before, so maybe she was doing better than he thought. Besides, it wasn't like Howard was ever opposed to the idea of going alone to an event. 

With a smirk, Howard approached the exit, ready for a fun night.


	2. Chapter 2

The bar by the New York Bell Company was more than appreciated by most of the SSR agents, as they enjoyed having a place to get a drink within walking distance, but it was never that way for Daniel. Sure, sometimes he joined them, but usually he preferred spending his nights without the stares, the judgement in the room, and drink alone. But tonight was different, as the short distance from the office would help prevent the world from finding a way to delay this drink any longer.

Then again, it wasn’t like they hadn’t already experienced obstacles before leaving the office, but she flattered him by choosing to keep their plans over going to a high-profile event with Stark. It didn't surprise Daniel, but that didn't mean that sentiment wasn't appreciated.

Still, he couldn't silence that thought in his mind as they ventured outside. "You could have gone, you know. This could have waited."

Peggy immediately shook her head. "I disagree. We’ve been putting this off long enough.” Something also told her that Howard wouldn't suffer for being alone either.  “Besides, I don't fancy being in the papers tomorrow.”

"I thought you didn't care about what other people thought about you."

"I don't," Peggy said, knowing that it wasn't completely true. She had come close to destroying a few radios in the last couple of months. "Doesn't mean that I want to hear it."

Daniel nodded, as he held the door to the bar open for her to enter first. "Like with the radio show."

She thought about thanking him, but instead, she nodded back and walked inside. "Exactly."

As the door closed behind him, the bartender saw them approaching the bar. "What's your poison tonight?" he asked.

"Whiskey, neat," Daniel replied as he sat down.

“Make that two.”

He chuckled as he aligned his crutch with the bar. "Good day then."

Her head tilted slightly, as that was technically true, but she wondered how he knew that. Instead of asking, she nodded again, so once their drinks arrived, they chinked they glasses together and took a sip.

As Peggy swallowed, she felt her lips part to a smile as she found Daniel’s eyes again. "What?" he asked her.

Peggy put her glass back down on the counter, then lifted her hand to cover the hand he was resting on the bar. "This is going to sound strange, but this is nice."  It wasn’t much, and it had hardly begun, but the quiet bar, the genuine company, well, it _was_ a nice change of pace. "Thank you for asking me."

He tried not to look down at her hand, which to his surprise, hadn’t moved away yet. No doubt his cheeks were turning a little pink, but Daniel hoped that the bar lighting would hide it. "I figured it was the least I could do after everything. I also realized that Stark was right about one thing."

After a laugh, Peggy took her hand back to allow her to have another sip of her drink. "Don't tell him that. His ego is big enough as it is." 

"Still, we don't know how to stop working, do we?" Daniel watched her pause once her glass met the bar again. Slowly, her eyes moved towards him. "I don't know about you, but I still find it hard to let people in."

They had their reasons for that, connected to the war, but for the most part, that was where the similarities stopped. However, most interactions did seem to come with a hint of pity or underestimation for their abilities. Maybe that was what he truly appreciated about his bond with Peggy. She worked hard and expected everyone else around her to be capable of the same. Initially, it was certainly a refreshing change compared to the rest of the office and it eventually helped to change the minds of other SSR agents.

Her lips pursed momentarily before she spoke. "That's... what made it what you thought I did so hard, didn't it?"

Part of her regretted the way she goaded him during her interrogation. Honestly, it had been decent detective work, and if was in his shoes, without the intelligence from Howard or her missions with Jarvis, chances were that she would have made the same mistake. But, in the heat of the moment, knowing she was that close to Dottie, she had no choice.

"Probably," Daniel replied, not intending for Peggy to go down that particular train of thought. "But that doesn't matter anymore." He grinned at her, but when her expression hadn't changed much, he returned the gesture she showed him earlier. "Water under the bridge."

When his hand came into her line of sight, she watched as it squeezed hers before letting her smile return to her face. "I’m glad Daniel."

They sat that way for a few minutes, forgetting their surroundings, their drinks, mostly everything. But when the door had slammed behind them, Daniel brought his hand back.

"This is probably weird for you, isn't it?" he asked before he tilted the glass towards his lips.

"What do you mean?"

"Taking time from saving the world," he said with a chuckle. "I don't mean any offence by it, but it doesn't seem like you ever stop."

Considering her dedication to her cases, not to mention her off-book missions for the Stark case, Peggy could hardly blame him for thinking that way. It wasn’t like she had let him, or anyone really, see her more relaxed for an extended period of time.

"I've been trying to slow down more often now,” she replied honestly. “Angie's got a few successful gigs in the past few months and I’ve tried to support her whenever possible."

That was encouraging to Daniel, as he hoped that she was taking time to do more outside of work, but it wasn’t his place to tell Peggy how to live her life. "I'm glad to hear that things are going well for her. She's quite the actress." 

Daniel was not about to forget meeting Peggy’s friend. Not only did she completely fool him, she threw Thompson for an absolute loop, which was incredibly amusing to watch. He also respected her, as it took a very loyal friend to cover for Peggy like Angie had. Especially since she never knew the whole truth.

Then again, that moment could have changed their friendship entirely. Curious, he asked, "Have you told her everything about what you do?"

"Not exactly,” Peggy replied, “but she understands enough to know that I can't exactly tell her about my day."  Putting extra emphasis on _phone company_ seemed to do the trick for the most part, but it was promising that Angie was more concerned about Peggy’s well-being than the cases. Her curious streak was there, but Angie stopped asking about cases a few weeks ago when she realized that Peggy was never going to divulge confidential secrets.

"So where were you today, if you don't mind me asking?"

She looked over to Daniel, whose eyes also held a hint of curiosity. "I don't, but it stays between us." When he nodded, she continued, "Whenever Chief says I went home sick, it means that I'm looking for Dottie. Or Ida. Or whatever she's going by now."

It wasn’t a perfect system, especially for days like today, but it would have to suffice for now, especially since it wasn’t like most people would be looking for her anyway. Besides Howard, Daniel was about the only person to come to mind.

He was also grateful for the honest answer, as he didn’t like being out of the loop when it came to Peggy. While he trusted her, and he knew that she was more than capable of handling her own missions, he didn’t want her to end up on the other end of the interrogation table again.

But this made sense, as they had technically closed the Stark case, but there was one obvious loose end and it wasn’t long ago that Peggy was giving Thompson a piece of her mind for not continuing the search for Dottie. That must have changed.

"It's not your fault she got away," he said, knowing that it wouldn’t likely sway her to that opinion, but he had to try.

Because she had a chance to ensure that Dottie didn’t get away. However, she also had an important choice to make, one that also could ensure that she didn’t lose one of her closest friends, that innocent lives weren’t lost that night.

"I just don't want to be blindsided again. Saving Howard was worth it, but I could have stopped her," she said, as she couldn’t shake the feeling that whatever Dottie did next could end up with more dire consequences.

When Daniel noticed her concern come through her body language, he changed the conversation. "It's good to see that Thompson's putting some faith in you. I'm not saying that you haven't earned it, but that's not a given in this field."

Peggy turned her head, confused by his words, as this was the second time he had something like that today. "He respects you too, you know," she said, watching as he pursed his lips before taking a drink. "He told me of how you fooled the doctor."

After swallowing, he said, "Just doing my job." He released his glass once it hit the bar, letting a chuckle out as he remembered that night. "I almost couldn't believe that he got the jump on Thompson."

She shrugged a shoulder. "We all have our moments."

"Do you?"

At that, Peggy raised her eyebrow. "You do know that the only reason I got caught was because of Dottie, right?" She watched him nod slowly, then, for some reason, he laughed. “What?”

"Look at us,” he said, gesturing his hand between them. “We're off the clock and we're still talking about work. Kind of a waste of a drink, don't you think?"

He did have a point. Maybe that was why it took so long for them to have this drink the first place. "It's the consequence of where we come from I guess," she said. "Not much to go home to."

_Amen to that_ , he thought, but Daniel bit the words back. "Still, the only thing I know about you is work related. War records, your close-combat skills and overall skills as an agent."

"What would you like to know?"

He froze. There were multiple questions about her that he wanted to ask, and here she was, giving him that chance. Yet, as he found his words, those questions faded away.

 "The funny thing is... I don't know," he said. Daniel didn't want to press her to talk about her past, as besides what he already knew, there seemed to be a lot of pain there. Add that to the fact that he had no idea what she did outside of the office, he didn't want to pressure her to thinking he was entitled to that information.

"I get that," Peggy replied, completely understanding where he was coming from. While she wanted to be open with him, and likely would have if he asked, she appreciated his respect for her privacy. "But I think we'll get there someday."

"I'd like that." he said with a smile.

"You should really come by to visit. I know Angie would love to meet you, outside of official capacity." Once Peggy had disclosed that she worked with the agents Angie met that day, that was the one place where Angie’s curiosity hadn’t stopped. She couldn’t ask about cases, but she could point out how her co-workers were _dreamboats._

_On second thought, maybe Daniel meeting Angie wasn’t a great idea_ , she thought with a grin, knowing that didn’t matter, as their meeting felt inevitable.

So she continued, "And Jarvis is not nearly as repulsive as Chief Dooley thought. Or at least, not when you get to know him."

Seeing the way she talked about the people in her life, it was a refreshing change for Daniel. Peggy Carter had shown passion in many ways, but this was different. Her face lit up, her smile apparent and her eyes sparkling. "They're lucky to have you," he said.

"And I'm lucky to have you." Peggy bumped her shoulder against Daniel’s, watching as he smiled back at her. "If memory serves, you're the only one who offered me this."

His eyes narrowed before countering. "Not true. Thompson after Russia."

She lifted her hand to point at Daniel. "That was the guy's night out."

"No, he was insistent that you come. That is rare, trust me."

That much was technically true, as normally, Jack was insistent on keeping her out of after-work functions, but Peggy supposed getting to know a man's darkest secret and swearing to keep it has some sort of merit. However, for the first time, Jack just seemed to be in agreeable mood when it came to being a decent human being.

That led directly Peggy's next counter. “Which explains why he was insistent that you came too.” Daniel had no answer then, so Peggy sighed as she told him the truth. "That invite was purely out of gratitude, nothing more."

What that gratitude was for was a completely different manner, but this was one thing she couldn't tell Daniel.

Of course, that led to him jumping to another conclusion. "And this is any different?"

Because on paper, it would be an easy argument. Maybe gratitude mixed with forgiveness, but the right ingredients were there.

"It is," Peggy replied. "We got all that sorted out already. This is a social call, we're just terrible at it."

Unable to hold back a chuckle, he finally gave in. “I suppose we are.”

But that didn't entirely erase the uncertainty he felt. Things were good between them, he knew that, but there was so many other things unsaid. Things that made other facets of his life more difficult.

Not to mention the fact that Peggy was incredibly perceptive and saw right through him. “Is something the matter, Daniel?”

“Honestly? I don’t know how to answer that,” he replied.

Because she had nailed the description of tonight perfectly. It was _nice_ getting to see Peggy like this, establish the rapport that had grown at the office in a social setting. Seeing her relaxed, it really brought out how beautiful she was, which unfortunately for him, was a problem.

“I know the feeling,” Peggy said. This moment felt similar to how she felt coming to work the day after she had asked for this raincheck. It was weeks ago, yet they were only getting to it now. “I know I shouldn’t ask, but I have to know, did you think I was rejecting you when I said that I couldn’t go for drinks that night?”

That answer should have been easy for him. But Daniel felt himself pause, as while he was needlessly teased about this by the other agents, he had no idea if Peggy knew how he felt about her.

“I… don’t know,” he said, his fingers curling around his glass, tempted to finish the contents. “Initially, I guess. It wasn’t exactly a shocking concept.”

“Why? Because a woman can’t replace a shield for a crutch?”  Peggy watched his eyes widen, giving her the answer she needed. “You were not the only one who heard Krzeminski’s teasing. God rest his soul, but that man was incorrigible at times.”

“Peggy…”

She waited for him to finish that thought, but instead he sighed. That was enough for her to press on.

“It’s funny because I thought it was ludicrous,” she said. “I mean, it’s not completely unheard of for men and women to respect each other and have a cordial working relationship.” She had plenty of experience in that area. Jarvis for one, and even Howard didn’t take long to take the hint. “For so long, I couldn’t see it as anything else.”

Then she saw his face when he had pointed his gun at her, then he let her get away. She hadn't seen anything like that in a long time. "Eventually, I realized that, by going rogue, I was messing with more than our professional relationship.”

All that was supposed to be all water under the bridge, Daniel had acknowledged as much earlier, but he supposed that they both knew it wasn’t simple. Not as long as they both knew where he stood.

This time, he picked up his glass, but held enough of his resolve to take a sip, refusing to meet her eyes. “Please, don’t feel like you have to explain.”

He wasn’t the only one avoiding eye contact, as Peggy stared ahead, afraid of what she knew that she had to say next. “I have to Daniel. If I don’t do this now, then I’ll regret it. No matter how rusty I am at this.”

Daniel blinked before he turned his head towards her. “What?”

Her head remained where it was, but he watched as her lips pursed slightly. “It always feels like I’m running from relationships, hoping that by allowing other people to go by their regular lives… that I don’t need to have one.”

He scoffed. “You know that’s crazy, right?”

“Yes, but it’s how I lived for so long.” Peggy had lost enough people in her life, that with each one, it became harder to let herself remember how happy it made her to have people she could rely on. “If I was available that night, I would have said yes. Please know that.”

Because she had changed. Jarvis had started it, with his relentless desire to help, even though he had no training and he often had no idea what he was doing. Peggy smirked at the memories of them working together, but he had grown to be a real friend.

As for Daniel, he was something else entirely. They had their share of bumps, but they could still respect each other, tease each other. He also had this uncanny ability to making her relax, and she had missed how it felt to want to trust someone like this again. For even after she thought she had shot their relationship to hell, he had forgiven her.

“I know,” he said with a slow nod, as her recent move came up naturally in one of their future conversations. Daniel had felt so stupid for misunderstanding. “With time, I learned to understand what happened that night.”

She reached across to take his hand, letting their fingers interlock. His eyes met hers, and Peggy had little doubt that he could see through her pitiful attempt to hide her vulnerabilities. “I wish I could tell you everything you want to hear right now. I know time isn’t on our side, but I...”

When her head dipped, Daniel leaned forward, trying to re-find her eyes. “Hey, Peg, look at me.” She obliged, so he grinned slightly before adding, “I’m not going anywhere.”

It was sweet of him to think that, but he knew better. Peggy figured it was about time that he knew that she knew too. “Except you are… Chief.”

His head tilted slightly, as he was able to hide his surprise well. Eventually, he scoffed again as he stared ahead. “Of course you know about California.”

She squeezed his hand unconsciously, despite her earlier temptation to move it away. “It’s a tremendous opportunity, Daniel. You would be a fool to turn it down.”

“Then come with me,” he said, his head whirling in her direction. He let her shock work through her system, but he refused to let her get in the next word. “I’m serious. You’ll be far from alone, as among many other stories, I know Stark has bought a movie studio and Jarvis is moving with him to Los Angeles. You’ve said yourself that Angie’s working to the bone, so you probably don’t see her that often.” 

He smirked as he shook his head, realizing that he was loading her with way too much information. “I know I’m biased for a lot of reasons, including the fact that I would be honoured to keep working with you. But I think it would also be another chance for a fresh start.” Glancing up at her eyes, he added, “More than anyone, you deserve that.”

That all sounded really lovely to Peggy, like a dream honestly. But instead, she pulled her hand back. “Do you really want me there with you? I tend to bring trouble and destruction with me.”

“Good,” Daniel replied, his grin tugging further. He was more than aware of that. “Then maybe next time, you will let me help you instead of going at it alone.”

“I was never alone,” she replied. _Or at least, not all the time_ , she added in her head.

“While Jarvis has his skills, I would sleep better knowing that someone with a bit more training was helping you.” Even better if he was that someone.

Peggy thought about it, as it did sound promising. New York did hold some prominent memories of Steve, and even though she had done her best to say goodbye to the man, the fact that Brooklyn was his home and meant a lot to Steve wasn’t about to be something she forgot.

Then there was Dottie. She hadn’t had a solid lead in weeks, as this one dried up pretty quickly. Maybe Jack was right, and it was time to throw in the towel. Who knows, maybe California would provide the answers she needed. Because if she had to be honest, as far as Jack had come since Russia, she would much rather work with Daniel, someone who didn’t need to see her in action to believe her credentials and abilities.

There was also the way that he looked at her right now, it almost made her blush, as it felt strange to be actually wanted for something. Outside of Howard clearing his name of course.

“I’ll think about it, Chief,” she finally said.

“You can’t call me that yet.”

She grinned. “Says who?”

 

 

**~0~**

 

 

For a few weeks, things between him and Peggy were really great. They regularly got drinks after work and Daniel stopped by her place to meet Angie officially. He was happier than he had remembered being since starting at the SSR, and he liked to think that Peggy was more relaxed too.

So of course, those routines had a deadline.

While Daniel considered turning down the promotion, he knew that Peggy would never forgive him if he had. And at this point, he couldn’t deny the appeal of leading an SSR office, to start this office on the right foot.

Regardless of his decision though, Daniel knew better than to press Peggy for her answer to join him. He knew that her life was here in New York, even with Stark and Jarvis already in California. Plus, he knew that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t leave the Dottie investigation behind. Sure enough, two weeks before Daniel left for California, Peggy got a tip on Dottie’s whereabouts and went dark. Daniel left for Los Angeles alone, never knowing what her answer would be.

From there, life went on.

He hired his agents, solved a few cases, even tried to have a semblance of a social life. If nothing else, he had never foreseen finding such an amiable nurse to help him through his physical therapy. But after a few dates, he could feel that he still wasn’t over Peggy, so he called things off.

That led to a stronger focus on work, besides getting to know Rose better. Daniel was still trying to figure out how Jack had let her come with him, but considering she was the _only_ agent he let Daniel take, he supposed it made sense. But on days when it felt like he was never going to accomplish what he wanted to, Rose was always there, reminding him of why he came out here and that he was capable.

Over the last three months, she had become more than his most valuable agent, she was his closest friend and confidante in California. But even she couldn’t stop the work from overwhelming him, especially when the Lady in the Lake case came up and Daniel was forced to ask Thompson for help. They didn’t have that much information on the case, but he hoped that a lead would cross his desk at some point.

Luckily, a few days later, that lead came, and while he wanted to be here for when the agent from New York arrived, Daniel knew that this couldn’t wait.

As he descended the stairs to the agency portion of the California SSR headquarters, he could hear the secret door open. He didn’t think much of it until he heard a familiar voice that caused him to pause. That was a voice he was almost starting to think he wouldn’t hear again.

“How is… everything?” Peggy had said.

The door had hid the sound of him coming down the stairs, but while Daniel knew that he couldn’t sneak back upstairs, his feet wouldn’t move.

Then Rose said, “Everything is… through the first door on your right. You can’t miss him.”

He waited for Peggy to correct Rose, but that comment never came. Instead, she took the first step, and Daniel knew he had to make his presence known.  Rounding the corner, he watched her stutter to a stop two steps in front of him.

“You’re who Thompson sent,” he said.

Peggy tilted her head slightly, her face showing the slightest bit of disappointment. “I thought you sent for me.”

“I would have… had I known that you were back.” Seeing her face light up again, there was one more question he needed to ask. “Did you find Dottie?”

“In prison as we speak. That is, if Thompson doesn’t completely blow the interrogation.”

Daniel chuckled. “That doesn’t sound promising.” Because Dottie wasn’t the usual perp. The _stick_ routine that Jack relied on would likely have little effect. But they couldn’t do anything to change that, Daniel had his own case, and he was grateful that Jack had sent his best agent to help.

Although maybe that was the point. The joke was on Thompson though, because he might as well have signed Peggy’s transfer papers.

“Chief Sousa,” Rose said, as both had forgotten her standing there. “Should I put your calls on hold for now?”

“Yes, I have an appointment with the lead detective on the Lady in the Lake case.” He wanted to ignore it, take this opportunity to catch up with Peggy, but he knew better. “Care to join me, Carter? I can catch you up on the way.”

“Sounds perfect,” she said.

He walked down the rest of the steps with her, not overly gracefully, but their eye contact didn’t break until he reached the bottom. Once they arrived at the front door, he felt her fingers slip through his hand and they left the Auerbach Theatrical Agency together.

Meanwhile, Rose sat back at her desk, unable to keep her grin at bay.

 

 

 

**~End~**

 

**Author's Note:**

> This story idea has been on my laptop since Valediction aired, but I never could come with an ending. I didn't realize until after Season 2 aired that it gave me the great way to end this, but then I kept forgetting to write it. Now that it's finally done, I hope the wait was worth it.


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